Tag Archives: Barry Jackson

Post navigation

Book Expo America (BEA) is held every year in the massive glass roofed Javits Center in New York City. Within its walls, publishers, authors, illustrators, librarians, bloggers, teachers, narrators and all forms of book loving folk gather in small and large booths that span numerous floors (I don’t even think I saw them all, and I was there for the whole day!). Crowds are everywhere and lines the likes of those you would only find at an amusement park form too get advanced readers copies (ARCs) of books. There are well known publishers and authors and then there are hidden gems…. (shiny jewels scattered about like treasures just waiting to be discovered).

One such treasure is new author, Barry Jackson and Turn The Page Publishing.

Barry Jackson is a wonderful person to meet anywhere, but at BEA, when I met him, he happened to be giving out ARCs of his semi-autobiographical novel, Furry Paw, Middle Claw, which just sweetened the deal that is Mr. Jackson.

In the beginning of Furry Paw, Middle Claw, you are placed right in the middle of Dean Parker’s dysfunctional childhood. His dad didn’t really like him and instead of teaching him how to trust he taught him how not to trust by having him jump 10 feet down from a barn loft, promising that he would catch him, only to let him (purposefully) fall and explained that THIS was why you don’t trust.

Then during Dean’s college aged experiences you see this lesson his dad taught him start to take effect… All of this leads up to him meeting Melissa, (who he has a GIANT crush on) and her nasty ol’ cats. Dean must then learn to trust, and win over the hearts of her cats (or he can try to creatively dispose of them) in order to gain her undivided attention.

Somewhere along the ridiculously funny way, Dean might find that maybe he and the little furry beasts can reside in the same household, loving the same woman, without giving each other the middle claw at each interaction.

I LOVED THIS BOOK!!!! I read it 3 times in about as many days because I loved it so much and didn’t want to miss anything in this detail rich novel. The first time I read this book, in school, I COULD NOT put it down (I was scolded quite a lot while reading during class). THHPPPTTT 😛

If there was such a thing as a shelf higher than the keeper shelf this book would go on it! I really did find myself looking at the world differently for having read it. I recommend it to anyone over the age of 12… and then only due to some advanced jokes and lessons that some children might not understand.

LOVED, LOVED, LOVED THIS BOOK!!!!

Izzy :Z

.

.

Because THEY said so or what your parents might say…

Because they said so (what your parents would say:) Some cursing a single sexy scene (only one or two paragraphs long), I would suggest maybe reading with a parent for ages under 12 due to some adult humor that requires a specific sense of humor.